Trajectools continues growing. Lately, we have started expanding towards public transport analysis. The algorithms available through the current Trajectools development version are courtesy of the gtfs_functions library.

There are a couple of existing plugins that deal with GTFS. However, in my experience, they either don’t integrate with Processing and/or don’t provide the functions I was expecting.

So far, we have two GTFS algorithms to cover essential public transport analysis needs:

The “Extract shapes” algorithm gives us the public transport routes:

The “Extract segments” algorithm has one more options. In addition to extracting the segments between public transport stops, it can also enrich the segments with the scheduled vehicle speeds:

Here you can see the scheduled speeds:

To show the stops, we can put marker line markers on the segment start and end locations:

The segments contain route information and stop names, so these can be extracted and used for labeling as well:

If you want to reproduce the above examples, grab the open Vorarlberg public transport schedule GTFS.

These developments are supported by the Emeralds Horizon Europe project.

Previously, we mapped neo4j spatial nodes. This time, we want to take it one step further and map relationships.

A prime example, are the relationships between GTFS StopTime and Trip nodes. For example, this is the Cypher query to get all StopTime nodes of Trip 17:

MATCH 
    (t:Trip  {id: "17"})
    <-[:BELONGS_TO]-
    (st:StopTime) 
RETURN st

To get the stop locations, we also need to get the stop nodes:

MATCH 
    (t:Trip {id: "17"})
    <-[:BELONGS_TO]-
    (st:StopTime)
    -[:STOPS_AT]->
    (s:Stop)
RETURN st ,s

Adapting our code from the previous post, we can plot the stops:

from shapely.geometry import Point

QUERY = """MATCH (
    t:Trip {id: "17"})
    <-[:BELONGS_TO]-
    (st:StopTime)
    -[:STOPS_AT]->
    (s:Stop)
RETURN st ,s
ORDER BY st.stopSequence
"""

with driver.session(database="neo4j") as session:
    tx = session.begin_transaction()
    results = tx.run(QUERY)
    df = results.to_df(expand=True)
    gdf = gpd.GeoDataFrame(
        df[['s().prop.name']], crs=4326,
        geometry=df["s().prop.location"].apply(Point)
    )

tx.close() 
m = gdf.explore()
m

Ordering by stop sequence is actually completely optional. Technically, we could use the sorted GeoDataFrame, and aggregate all the points into a linestring to plot the route. But I want to try something different: we’ll use the NEXT_STOP relationships to get a DataFrame of the start and end stops for each segment:

QUERY = """
MATCH (t:Trip {id: "17"})
   <-[:BELONGS_TO]-
   (st1:StopTime)
   -[:NEXT_STOP]->
   (st2:StopTime)
MATCH (st1)-[:STOPS_AT]->(s1:Stop)
MATCH (st2)-[:STOPS_AT]->(s2:Stop)
RETURN st1, st2, s1, s2
"""

from shapely.geometry import Point, LineString

def make_line(row):
    s1 = Point(row["s1().prop.location"])
    s2 = Point(row["s2().prop.location"])
    return LineString([s1,s2])

with driver.session(database="neo4j") as session:
    tx = session.begin_transaction()
    results = tx.run(QUERY)
    df = results.to_df(expand=True)
    gdf = gpd.GeoDataFrame(
        df[['s1().prop.name']], crs=4326,
        geometry=df.apply(make_line, axis=1)
    )

tx.close() 
gdf.explore(m=m)

Finally, we can also use Cypher to calculate the travel time between two stops:

MATCH (t:Trip {id: "17"})
   <-[:BELONGS_TO]-
   (st1:StopTime)
   -[:NEXT_STOP]->
   (st2:StopTime)
MATCH (st1)-[:STOPS_AT]->(s1:Stop)
MATCH (st2)-[:STOPS_AT]->(s2:Stop)
RETURN st1.departureTime AS time1, 
   st2.arrivalTime AS time2, 
   s1.location AS geom1, 
   s2.location AS geom2, 
   duration.inSeconds(
      time(st1.departureTime), 
      time(st2.arrivalTime)
   ).seconds AS traveltime

As always, here’s the notebook: https://github.com/anitagraser/QGIS-resources/blob/master/qgis3/notebooks/neo4j.ipynb

In the recent post Setting up a graph db using GTFS data & Neo4J, we noted that — unfortunately — Neomap is not an option to visualize spatial nodes anymore.

GeoPandas to the rescue!

But first we need the neo4j Python driver:

pip install neo4j

Then we can connect to our database. The default user name is neo4j and you get to pick the password when creating the database:

from neo4j import GraphDatabase

URI = "neo4j://localhost"
AUTH = ("neo4j", "password")

with GraphDatabase.driver(URI, auth=AUTH) as driver:
    driver.verify_connectivity()

Once we have confirmed that the connection works as expected, we can run a query:

QUERY = "MATCH (p:Stop) RETURN p.name AS name, p.location AS geom"

records, summary, keys = driver.execute_query(
    QUERY, database_="neo4j",
)

for rec in records:
    print(rec)

Nice. There we have our GTFS stops, their names and their locations. But how to put them on a map?

Conveniently, there is a to_db() function in the Neo4j driver:

import geopandas as gpd
import numpy as np

with driver.session(database="neo4j") as session:
    tx = session.begin_transaction()
    results = tx.run(QUERY)
    df = results.to_df(expand=True)
    df = df[df["geom[].0"]>0]
    gdf = gpd.GeoDataFrame(
        df['name'], crs=4326,
        geometry=gpd.points_from_xy(df['geom[].0'], df['geom[].1']))
    print(gdf)

tx.close() 

Since some of the nodes lack geometries, I added a quick and dirty hack to get rid of these nodes because — otherwise — gdf.explore() will complain about None geometries.

You can find this notebook at: https://github.com/anitagraser/QGIS-resources/blob/1e4ea435c9b1795ba5b170ddb176aa83689112eb/qgis3/notebooks/neo4j.ipynb

Next step will have to be the relationships. Stay posted.

In a recent post, we looked into a graph-based model for maritime mobility data and how it may be represented in Neo4J. Today, I want to look into another type of mobility data: public transport schedules in GTFS format.

In this post, I’ll be using the public GTFS data for Riga since Riga is one of the demo sites for our current EMERALDS research project.

The workflow is heavily inspired by Bert Radke‘s post “Loading the UK GTFS data feed” from 2021 and his import Cypher script which I used as a template, adjusted to the requirements of the Riga dataset, and updated to recent Neo4J changes.

Here we go.

Since a GTFS export is basically a ZIP archive full of CSVs, we will be making good use of Neo4Js CSV loading capabilities. The basic script for importing the stops file and creating point geometries from lat and lon values would be:

LOAD CSV with headers 
FROM "file:///stops.txt" 
AS row 
CREATE (:Stop {
   stop_id: row["stop_id"],
   name: row["stop_name"], 
   location: point({
    longitude: toFloat(row["stop_lon"]),
    latitude: toFloat(row["stop_lat"])
    })
})

This requires that the stops.txt is located in the import directory of your Neo4J database. When we run the above script and the file is missing, Neo4J will tell us where it tried to look for it. In my case, the directory ended up being:

C:\Users\Anita\.Neo4jDesktop\relate-data\dbmss\dbms-72882d24-bf91-4031-84e9-abd24624b760\import

So, let’s put all GTFS CSVs into that directory and we should be good to go.

Let’s start with the agency file:

load csv with headers from
'file:///agency.txt' as row
create (a:Agency {
   id: row.agency_id, 
   name: row.agency_name, 
   url: row.agency_url, 
   timezone: row.agency_timezone, 
   lang: row.agency_lang
});

… Added 1 label, created 1 node, set 5 properties, completed after 31 ms.

The routes file does not include agency info but, luckily, there is only one agency, so we can hard-code it:

load csv with headers from
'file:///routes.txt' as row
match (a:Agency {id: "rigassatiksme"})
create (a)-[:OPERATES]->(r:Route {
   id: row.route_id, 
   shortName: row.route_short_name,
   longName: row.route_long_name, 
   type: toInteger(row.route_type)
});

… Added 81 labels, created 81 nodes, set 324 properties, created 81 relationships, completed after 28 ms.

From stops, I’m removing non-existent or empty columns:

load csv with headers from
'file:///stops.txt' as row
create (s:Stop {
   id: row.stop_id, 
   name: row.stop_name, 
   location: point({
      latitude: toFloat(row.stop_lat), 
      longitude: toFloat(row.stop_lon)
   }),
   code: row.stop_code
});

… Added 1671 labels, created 1671 nodes, set 5013 properties, completed after 71 ms.

From trips, I’m also removing non-existent or empty columns:

load csv with headers from
'file:///trips.txt' as row
match (r:Route {id: row.route_id})
create (r)<-[:USES]-(t:Trip {
   id: row.trip_id, 
   serviceId: row.service_id,
   headSign: row.trip_headsign, 
   direction_id: toInteger(row.direction_id),
   blockId: row.block_id,
   shapeId: row.shape_id
});

… Added 14427 labels, created 14427 nodes, set 86562 properties, created 14427 relationships, completed after 875 ms.

Slowly getting there. We now have around 16k nodes in our graph:

Finally, it’s stop times time. This is where the serious information is. This file is much larger than all previous ones with over 300k lines (i.e. times when an PT vehicle stops).

This requires another tweak to Bert’s script since using periodic commit is not supported anymore: The PERIODIC COMMIT query hint is no longer supported. Please use CALL { … } IN TRANSACTIONS instead. So I ended up using the following, based on https://community.neo4j.com/t/best-practice-for-replacement-of-using-periodic-commit-to-call-in-transactions/48636/2:

:auto
load csv with headers from
'file:///stop_times.txt' as row
CALL { with row
match (t:Trip {id: row.trip_id}), (s:Stop {id: row.stop_id})
create (t)<-[:BELONGS_TO]-(st:StopTime {
   arrivalTime: row.arrival_time, 
   departureTime: row.departure_time,
   stopSequence: toInteger(row.stop_sequence)})-[:STOPS_AT]->(s)
} IN TRANSACTIONS OF 10 ROWS;

… Added 351388 labels, created 351388 nodes, set 1054164 properties, created 702776 relationships, completed after 1364220 ms.

As you can see, this took a while. But now we have all nodes in place:

The final statement adds additional relationships between consecutive stop times:

call apoc.periodic.iterate('match (t:Trip) return t',
'match (t)<-[:BELONGS_TO]-(st) with st order by st.stopSequence asc
with collect(st) as stops
unwind range(0, size(stops)-2) as i
with stops[i] as curr, stops[i+1] as next
merge (curr)-[:NEXT_STOP]->(next)', {batchmode: "BATCH", parallel:true, parallel:true, batchSize:1});

This fails with: There is no procedure with the name apoc.periodic.iterate registered for this database instance. Please ensure you've spelled the procedure name correctly and that the procedure is properly deployed.

So, let’s install APOC. That’s a plugin which we can install into our database from within Neo4J Desktop:

After restarting the db, we can run the query:

No errors. Sounds good.

Let’s have a look at what we ended up with. Here are 25 random Trips. I expanded one of them to show its associated StopTimes. We can see the relations between consecutive StopTimes and I’ve expanded the final five StopTimes to show their linked Stops:

I also wanted to visualize the stops on a map. And there used to be a neat app called Neomap which can be installed easily:

However, Neomap does not seem to be compatible with the latest Neo4J:

So this final step will have to wait for another time.

This is a guest post by Chris Kohler @Chriskohler8.

Introduction:

This guide provides step-by-step instructions to produce drive-time isochrones using a single vector shapefile. The method described here involves building a routing network using a single vector shapefile of your roads data within a Virtual Box. Furthermore, the network is built by creating start and end nodes (source and target nodes) on each road segment. We will use Postgresql, with PostGIS and Pgrouting extensions, as our database. Please consider this type of routing to be fair, regarding accuracy, as the routing algorithms are based off the nodes locations and not specific addresses. I am currently working on an improved workflow to have site address points serve as nodes to optimize results. One of the many benefits of this workflow is no financial cost to produce (outside collecting your roads data). I will provide instructions for creating, and using your virtual machine within this guide.

Steps:–Getting Virtual Box(begin)–

Intro 1. Download/Install Oracle VM(https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads)

Intro 2. Start the download/install OSGeo-Live 11(https://live.osgeo.org/en/overview/overview.html).

Pictures used in this workflow will show 10.5, though version 11 can be applied similarly. Make sure you download the version: osgeo-live-11-amd64.iso. If you have trouble finding it, here is the direct link to the download (https://sourceforge.net/projects/osgeo-live/files/10.5/osgeo-live-10.5-amd64.iso/download)
Intro 3. Ready for virtual machine creation: We will utilize the downloaded OSGeo-Live 11 suite with a virtual machine we create to begin our workflow. The steps to create your virtual machine are listed below. Also, here are steps from an earlier workshop with additional details with setting up your virtual machine with osgeo live(http://workshop.pgrouting.org/2.2.10/en/chapters/installation.html).

1.  Create Virutal Machine: In this step we begin creating the virtual machine housing our database.

Open Oracle VM VirtualBox Manager and select “New” located at the top left of the window.

Then fill out name, operating system, memory, etc. to create your first VM.

2. Add IDE Controller:  The purpose of this step is to create a placeholder for the osgeo 11 suite to be implemented. In the virtual box main window, right-click your newly-created vm and open the settings.

In the settings window, on the left side select the storage tab.

Find “adds new storage controller” button located at the bottom of the tab. Be careful of other buttons labeled “adds new storage attachment”! Select “adds new storage controller” button and a drop-down menu will appear. From the top of the drop-down select “Add IDE Controller”.

You will see a new item appear in the center of the window under the “Storage Tree”.

3.  Add Optical Drive: The osgeo 11 suite will be implemented into the virtual machine via an optical drive. Highlight the new controller IDE you created and select “add optical drive”.

A new window will pop-up and select “Choose Disk”.

Locate your downloaded file “osgeo-live 11 amd64.iso” and click open. A new object should appear in the middle window under your new controller displaying “osgeo-live-11.0-amd64.iso”.

Finally your virtual machine is ready for use.
Start your new Virtual Box, then wait and follow the onscreen prompts to begin using your virtual machine.

–Getting Virtual Box(end)—

4. Creating the routing database, and both extensions (postgis, pgrouting): The database we create and both extensions we add will provide the functions capable of producing isochrones.

To begin, start by opening the command line tool (hold control+left-alt+T) then log in to postgresql by typing “psql -U user;” into the command line and then press Enter. For the purpose of clear instruction I will refer to database name in this guide as “routing”, feel free to choose your own database name. Please input the command, seen in the figure below, to create the database:

CREATE DATABASE routing;

You can use “\c routing” to connect to the database after creation.

The next step after creating and connecting to your new database is to create both extensions. I find it easier to take two-birds-with-one-stone typing “psql -U user routing;” this will simultaneously log you into postgresql and your routing database.

When your logged into your database, apply the commands below to add both extensions

CREATE EXTENSION postgis;
CREATE EXTENSION pgrouting;

5. Load shapefile to database: In this next step, the shapefile of your roads data must be placed into your virtual machine and further into your database.

My method is using email to send myself the roads shapefile then download and copy it from within my virtual machines web browser. From the desktop of your Virtual Machine, open the folder named “Databases” and select the application “shape2pgsql”.

Follow the UI of shp2pgsql to connect to your routing database you created in Step 4.

Next, select “Add File” and find your roads shapefile (in this guide we will call our shapefile “roads_table”) you want to use for your isochrones and click Open.

Finally, click “Import” to place your shapefile into your routing database.

6. Add source & target columns: The purpose of this step is to create columns which will serve as placeholders for our nodes data we create later.

There are multiple ways to add these columns into the roads_table. The most important part of this step is which table you choose to edit, the names of the columns you create, and the format of the columns. Take time to ensure the source & target columns are integer format. Below are the commands used in your command line for these functions.

ALTER TABLE roads_table ADD COLUMN "source" integer;
ALTER TABLE roads_table ADD COLUMN "target" integer;

7. Create topology: Next, we will use a function to attach a node to each end of every road segment in the roads_table. The function in this step will create these nodes. These newly-created nodes will be stored in the source and target columns we created earlier in step 6.

As well as creating nodes, this function will also create a new table which will contain all these nodes. The suffix “_vertices_pgr” is added to the name of your shapefile to create this new table. For example, using our guide’s shapefile name , “roads_table”, the nodes table will be named accordingly: roads_table_vertices_pgr. However, we will not use the new table created from this function (roads_table_vertices_pgr). Below is the function, and a second simplified version, to be used in the command line for populating our source and target columns, in other words creating our network topology. Note the input format, the “geom” column in my case was called “the_geom” within my shapefile:

pgr_createTopology('roads_table', 0.001, 'geom', 'id',
 'source', 'target', rows_where := 'true', clean := f)

Here is a direct link for more information on this function: http://docs.pgrouting.org/2.3/en/src/topology/doc/pgr_createTopology.html#pgr-create-topology

Below is an example(simplified) function for my roads shapefile:

SELECT pgr_createTopology('roads_table', 0.001, 'the_geom', 'id')

8. Create a second nodes table: A second nodes table will be created for later use. This second node table will contain the node data generated from pgr_createtopology function and be named “node”. Below is the command function for this process. Fill in your appropriate source and target fields following the manner seen in the command below, as well as your shapefile name.

To begin, find the folder on the Virtual Machines desktop named “Databases” and open the program “pgAdmin lll” located within.

Connect to your routing database in pgAdmin window. Then highlight your routing database, and find “SQL” tool at the top of the pgAdmin window. The tool resembles a small magnifying glass.

We input the below function into the SQL window of pgAdmin. Feel free to refer to this link for further information: (https://anitagraser.com/2011/02/07/a-beginners-guide-to-pgrouting/)

CREATE TABLE node AS
   SELECT row_number() OVER (ORDER BY foo.p)::integer AS id,
          foo.p AS the_geom
   FROM (     
      SELECT DISTINCT roads_table.source AS p FROM roads_table
      UNION
      SELECT DISTINCT roads_table.target AS p FROM roads_table
   ) foo
   GROUP BY foo.p;

9.  Create a routable network: After creating the second node table from step 8,  we will combine this node table(node) with our shapefile(roads_table) into one, new, table(network) that will be used as the routing network. This table will be called “network” and will be capable of processing routing queries.  Please input this command and execute in SQL pgAdmin tool as we did in step 8. Here is a reference for more information:(https://anitagraser.com/2011/02/07/a-beginners-guide-to-pgrouting/)   

CREATE TABLE network AS
   SELECT a.*, b.id as start_id, c.id as end_id
   FROM roads_table AS a
      JOIN node AS b ON a.source = b.the_geom
      JOIN node AS c ON a.target = c.the_geom;

10. Create a “noded” view of the network:  This new view will later be used to calculate the visual isochrones in later steps. Input this command and execute in SQL pgAdmin tool.

CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW network_nodes AS 
SELECT foo.id,
 st_centroid(st_collect(foo.pt)) AS geom 
FROM ( 
  SELECT network.source AS id,
         st_geometryn (st_multi(network.geom),1) AS pt 
  FROM network
  UNION 
  SELECT network.target AS id, 
         st_boundary(st_multi(network.geom)) AS pt 
  FROM network) foo 
GROUP BY foo.id;

11.​ Add column for speed:​ This step may, or may not, apply if your original shapefile contained a field of values for road speeds.

In reality a network of roads will typically contain multiple speed limits. The shapefile you choose may have a speed field, otherwise the discrimination for the following steps will not allow varying speeds to be applied to your routing network respectfully.

If values of speed exists in your shapefile we will implement these values into a new field, “traveltime“, that will show rate of travel for every road segment in our network based off their geometry. Firstly, we will need to create a column to store individual traveling speeds. The name of our column will be “traveltime” using the format: ​double precision.​ Input this command and execute in the command line tool as seen below.

ALTER TABLE network ADD COLUMN traveltime double precision;

Next, we will populate the new column “traveltime” by calculating traveling speeds using an equation. This equation will take each road segments geometry(shape_leng) and divide by the rate of travel(either mph or kph). The sample command I’m using below utilizes mph as the rate while our geometry(shape_leng) units for my roads_table is in feet​. If you are using either mph or kph, input this command and execute in SQL pgAdmin tool. Below further details explain the variable “X”.

UPDATE network SET traveltime = shape_leng / X*60

How to find X​, ​here is an example​: Using example 30 mph as rate. To find X, we convert 30 miles to feet, we know 5280 ft = 1 mile, so we multiply 30 by 5280 and this gives us 158400 ft. Our rate has been converted from 30 miles per hour to 158400 feet per hour. For a rate of 30 mph, our equation for the field “traveltime”  equates to “shape_leng / 158400*60″. To discriminate this calculations output, we will insert additional details such as “where speed = 30;”. What this additional detail does is apply our calculated output to features with a “30” value in our “speed” field. Note: your “speed” field may be named differently.

UPDATE network SET traveltime = shape_leng / 158400*60 where speed = 30;

Repeat this step for each speed value in your shapefile examples:

UPDATE network SET traveltime = shape_leng / X*60 where speed = 45;
UPDATE network SET traveltime = shape_leng / X*60 where speed = 55;

The back end is done. Great Job!

Our next step will be visualizing our data in QGIS. Open and connect QGIS to your routing database by right-clicking “PostGIS” in the Browser Panel within QGIS main window. Confirm the checkbox “Also list tables with no geometry” is checked to allow you to see the interior of your database more clearly. Fill out the name or your routing database and click “OK”.

If done correctly, from QGIS you will have access to tables and views created in your routing database. Feel free to visualize your network by drag-and-drop the network table into your QGIS Layers Panel. From here you can use the identify tool to select each road segment, and see the source and target nodes contained within that road segment. The node you choose will be used in the next step to create the views of drive-time.

12. ​Create views​: In this step, we create views from a function designed to determine the travel time cost. Transforming these views with tools will visualize the travel time costs as isochrones.

The command below will be how you start querying your database to create drive-time isochrones. Begin in QGIS by draging your network table into the contents. The visual will show your network as vector(lines). Simply select the road segment closest to your point of interest you would like to build your isochrone around. Then identify the road segment using the identify tool and locate the source and target fields. ​

Place the source or target field value in the below command where you see ​VALUE​, in all caps​.

This will serve you now as an isochrone catchment function for this workflow. Please feel free to use this command repeatedly for creating new isochrones by substituting the source value. Please input this command and execute in SQL pgAdmin tool.

*AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS WORKFLOW I PROVIDED AN EXAMPLE USING SOURCE VALUE “2022”

CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW "​view_name" AS 
SELECT di.seq, 
       di.id1, 
       di.id2, 
       di.cost, 
       pt.id, 
       pt.geom 
FROM pgr_drivingdistance('SELECT
     gid::integer AS id, 
     Source::integer AS source, 
     Target::integer AS target,                                    
     Traveltime::double precision AS cost 
       FROM network'::text, ​VALUE::bigint, 
    100000::double precision, false, false)
    di(seq, id1, id2, cost)
JOIN network_nodes pt ON di.id1 = pt.id;

13. ​Visualize Isochrone: Applying tools to the view will allow us to adjust the visual aspect to a more suitable isochrone overlay.

​After creating your view, a new item in your routing database is created, using the “view_name” you chose. Drag-and-drop this item into your QGIS LayersPanel. You will see lots of small dots which represent the nodes.

In the figure below, I named my view “take1“.

Each node you see contains a drive-time value, “cost”, which represents the time used to travel from the node you input in step 12’s function.

Start by installing the QGIS plug-in “Interpolation” by opening the Plugin Manager in QGIS interface.

Next, at the top of QGIS window select “Raster” and a drop-down will appear, select “Interpolation”.

A new window pops up and asks you for input.

Select your “​view”​ as the​ vector layer​, select ​”cost​” as your ​interpolation attribute​, and then click “Add”.

A new vector layer will show up in the bottom of the window, take care the type is “Points“. For output, on the other half of the window, keep the interpolation method as “TIN”, edit the ​output file​ location and name. Check the box “​Add result to project​”.

Note: decreasing the cellsize of X and Y will increase the resolution but at the cost of performance.

Click “OK” on the bottom right of the window.

A black and white raster will appear in QGIS, also in the Layers Panel a new item was created.

Take some time to visualize the raster by coloring and adjusting values in symbology until you are comfortable with the look.

14. ​Create contours of our isochrone:​ Contours can be calculated from the isochrone as well.

Find near the top of QGIS window, open the “Raster” menu drop-down and select Extraction → Contour.

Fill out the appropriate interval between contour lines but leave the check box “Attribute name” unchecked. Click “OK”.

15.​ Zip and Share:​ Find where you saved your TIN and contours, compress them in a zip folder by highlighting them both and right-click to select “compress”. Email the compressed folder to yourself to export out of your virtual machine.

Example Isochrone catchment for this workflow:

CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW "2022" AS 
SELECT di.seq, Di.id1, Di.id2, Di.cost,                           
       Pt.id, Pt.geom 
FROM pgr_drivingdistance('SELECT gid::integer AS id,                                       
     Source::integer AS source, Target::integer AS target, 
     Traveltime::double precision AS cost FROM network'::text, 
     2022::bigint, 100000::double precision, false, false) 
   di(seq, id1, id2, cost) 
JOIN netowrk_nodes pt 
ON di.id1 = pt.id;

References: Virtual Box ORACLE VM, OSGeo-Live 11  amd64 iso, Workshop FOSS4G Bonn(​http://workshop.pgrouting.org/2.2.10/en/index.html​),

How do you objectively define and compute which parts of a network are in the center? One approach is to use the concept of centrality.

Centrality refers to indicators which identify the most important vertices within a graph. Applications include identifying the most influential person(s) in a social network, key infrastructure nodes in the Internet or urban networks, and super spreaders of disease. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centrality)

Researching this topic, it turns out that some centrality measures have already been implemented in GRASS GIS. thumbs up!

v.net.centrality computes degree, betweeness, closeness and eigenvector centrality.

As a test, I’ve loaded the OSM street network of Vienna and run

v.net.centrality -a input=streets@anita_000 output=centrality degree=degree closeness=closeness betweenness=betweenness eigenvector=eigenvector

The computations take a while.

In my opinion, the most interesting centrality measures for this street network are closeness and betweenness:

Closeness “measures to which extent a node i is near to all the other nodes along the shortest paths”. Closeness values are lowest in the center of the network and higher in the outskirts.

Betweenness “is based on the idea that a node is central if it lies between many other nodes, in the sense that it is traversed by many of the shortest paths connecting couples of nodes.” Betweenness values are highest on bridges and other important arterials while they are lowest for dead-end streets.

(Definitions as described in more detail in Crucitti, Paolo, Vito Latora, and Sergio Porta. “Centrality measures in spatial networks of urban streets.” Physical Review E 73.3 (2006): 036125.)

Centrality: low values in pink, high values in green

Works great! Unfortunately, v.net.centrality is not yet part of the QGIS Processing GRASS toolbox. It would certainly be a great addition.

“The Morphing City” by Pedro M Cruz is a visualization of deviations of traffic velocities in the city of Lisbon:

The Morphing City from Pedro M Cruz on Vimeo.

Very inspiring!